Apparatus for inserting sticks in articles

ABSTRACT

A machine for automatically inserting round holder sticks into food articles such as wieners, includes a food holder for a row of wieners during the inserting operation, a hopper for supplying and aligning sticks to be inserted into the wieners, and a reciprocable carriage including plungers for feeding the sticks from the hopper into the wieners. The hopper includes agitators for assuring the feed of the sticks to the hopper feed chambers. A portable stick holder, for use with the machine, selectively clamps an array of sticks which have been inserted in respective wieners to handle these articles for subsequent processing.

United States Ratent Lowrance APPARATUS FOR INSERTING STICKS IN ARTICLES Thomas F. Lowrance, 3636 Samuell Blvd., Dallas, Tex. 75223 Filed: April 22, 1971 Appl. No.: 136,504

Inventor:

u.s. Cl. ..29/211 0, 29/1310. 46 Int. Cl. ..B23q 7/10, B23p 19/04 Field of Search ..29/21 1 1), mo. 46, 208 B,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 8/1971 Fries, Jr. et al. .....29/2l1 D X [451 Sept. 19, 1972 Primary Examiner--Thomas H. Eager Att0rney--Cecil L. Wood and Peter J. Murphy 5 7] ABSTRACT A machine for automatically inserting round holder sticks into food articles such as wieners, includes a food holder for a row of wieners during the inserting operation, a hopper for supplying and aligning sticks to be inserted into the wieners, and a reciprocable carriage including plungers for feeding the sticks from the b.9229! into QL L Q E Th hopper iris de agitators for assuring the feed of the sticks to the hopper feed chambers. A portable stick holder, for use with the machine, selectively clamps an array of sticks which have been inserted in respective wieners to handle these articles for subsequent processing.

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INVENTOR Thomas FLowronce ATTORNEYS PATENTEnsmsmz 3.691.608

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INVENTOR Thomas F. Lowrance BY e/zli W ATTORNEYS PATENTEnsirlsmz 3.691.608

Thomas E Lowrance i ATTORNEYS INVENTOR PATENTEDSEP 1 9 i972 SHEET 6 0F 6 mvmon Thomas F. Lowrance Fig.8

APPARATUS FOR INSERTING STICKS IN ARTICLES BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to apparatus for automatically inserting elongated sticks or similar members into articles; and more particularly for inserting holder sticks of circular cross section into food products such as wieners, and for subsequent handling of the assembled sticks and food products for subsequent processing.

The invention is particularly concerned with the manufacture and/or processing of a food product known as corny dogs which are made from wieners having a holder stick inserted in one end thereof and which are coated with a corn-meal batter for subsequent frying in deep fat. For quantity manufacture or processing of food products such as corny dogs, it is desirable to provide for minimum manual handling of the food products from the standpoint of sanitary protection, and to provide for automated handling for efficiency in processing operations.

An object of this invention is to provide automatic apparatus in which a plurality of articles may be loaded, which will automatically insert the holder sticks into the articles, and accommodating a processing holder for carrying the plurality of articles and assembled holder sticks as a unitary group for further processing.

Another object of this invention is to provide such apparatus including an operable article holder for receiving and retaining the articles during the insertion operation, and for providing ease of unloading of the assembled articles and holder sticks as a unitary group.

A further object of this invention is to provide such apparatus including an improved hopper for assuring feed of holder sticks to associated food chambers for delivery to articles.

Another object of this invention is to provide such apparatus including an improved transport holder for clamping a group of sticks with assembled articles for transporting a plurality of the articles during subsequent processing operations.

Another object of this invention is to provide and improved transport holder, for use with the stick feeding apparatus, which is of a type similar to that described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,316,010 issued Apr. 25, 1967.

These objects are achieved in apparatus which includes frame means defining a support table; an article holder mounted on one end of the table providing an array of chambers for confining a plurality of individual articles; a hopper mounted on the table in longitudinally spaced relation from the food holder including an array of stick bins supplying associated feed chambers which are aligned with respective article chambers; and a reciprocable carriage mounted at the other end of the support table including plungers longitudinally aligned with the feed chambers and article chambers for driving the sticks from the feed chambers into the article chambers. The hopper includes agitator means for urging feed of the sticks into the feed chambers. A portable transport holder means, positioned on the table between the hopper and article holder, includes means for grasping an array of sticks and assembled articles for removable from the food holder and for subsequent handling.

The novel features and the advantages of the invention, as well as additional objects thereof, will be un derstood more fully from the following description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of a preferred form of apparatus according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front elevation view of the apparatus of FIG. 1, including a showing of a transport holder with a batch of assembled articles supported on a rack associated with the apparatus;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken in the plane 4--4-of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is afragmentary sectional view taken in the horizontal plane 5--5 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary view of the apparatus from the bottom of the hopper as viewed from the plane 6- 6 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a vertical sectional view through the hopper taken in the plane 7-7 of FIG. 5 as viewed from the rear of the apparatus;

FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 7, showing the reciprocable elements of the hopper agitator assembly in the upper position;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of an isolated hopper divider element with associated agitator elements;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged plan view, broken and par tially in section, showing structural details of the transport holder, which is shown in full plan in FIG. 2;

FIG. 1 1 is a broken view of the transport holder, partially in section as viewed in the plane 11-11 of FIG. 10; and

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary plan view of the right hand end of the transport holder, as seen in FIG. 10, showing the clamping control lever in the clamping position.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The overall apparatus illustrated in the drawings, and which. will be described, includes a frame 10 for supporting other elements of the apparatus, and which defines an elongated horizontal support table having a food holder 11 mounted at the forward or operator end, a stick hopper 12 mounted intermediate the ends, and a carriage 13 mounted adjacent to the rearward endcarrying rodlike plungers for driving round holder sticks 19 from the hopper into the wieners 18 contained in the food holder. A pneumatic power cylinder 14 reciprocates the carriage 13; and a second pneumatic power cylinder 15, supported on the frame beneath the hopper, drives agitator elements within the hopper. A foot operated control valve assembly 16, mounted on the frame adjacent to the floor at the operator end, controls the power cylinders 14 and 15. A portable transport holder 17 is supported on the frame between the food holder and the hopper 12 for clamping the sticks which had been inserted into the wieners in the food holder, and for transporting assembled sticks and wieners as a batch for subsequent handling or processing.

Referring now to the structural features of the apparatus, the frame 10 provides a horizontal rectangular support table made up of front and rear rails and 22 respectively, and side rails 21 and 23 respectively. This table is supported on four vertical legs 24 at the corners thereof braced with suitable cross braces 25. Elongated side plates 26 and 27 are mounted on the upper surfaces of the side rails 21 and 23, at the front portion of the frame, for directly supporting the food holder 11, hopper 12 and carriage 13.

The food holder 11 is made up of lower and upper elongated plates 30 and 31 which are hinged at the forward edge. This food holder extends across the forward end of the support table, with the lower plate 30 being supported on and secured to the side plates 26 and 27. The food holder is also partially supported by a bracket 32 which is mounted on and extends forwardly from the front rail 20, and defines a rest for the upper plate or cover 31 when in the open position as shown in the broken lines in FIG. 1.

As best seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, the upper and lower plates of the food holder define an array of side-by-side elongated food chambers 33 which are dimensioned to retain and confine the weiners 18 shown in FIG. 2. The food chambers 33 are generally cylindrical in cross section and open to the rearward edge of the food holder 11, with each chamber being formed by mateing semicylinder recesses in the lower and upper plates respectively. The cover plate 31 includes a handle 35 by means of which the cover is manually opened and swung about its hinge for the loading and unloading of the wieners; and the cover may be supported on the bracket rest 32 during these operations.

The hopper 12 consists generally of an elongated rectangular case supported transversely across the frame on the side plates 26 and 27, spaced rearwardly on the frame from the food holder 11. The hopper case consists of a bottom plate 38 end walls 39 and 40 which are adjacent to the left and right sides of the frame respectively as viewed from the front of the apparatus, a front wall is formed from a lower guide plate 41 and upper wall plate 42, and the rear wall is formed correspondingly from a lower guide plate 43 and upper wall plate 44. A removable top cover 50 with an appropriate handle is provided for loading and unloading the hopper 12. I

The bottom plate 38 is provided with a plurality of side by side longitudinal grooves 45 which are semicylindrical, and which are longitudinally aligned, relative to the frame 10, with respective side-by-side food chambers 33 of the food holder 11. The front and rear guide plates 41 and 43 respectively are provided with holes of circular cross section which are aligned with the grooves 45; and these grooves with the confining guideplates define stick feed chambers from which the sticks are discharged from the hopper as will be described.

Side by side the dividers 46 within the hopper case define between each other and with the end wall 39 and 40, a plurality of side-by-side bins 47, each of which overlies and communicates with a respective feed chamber groove 45. In the drawings the several food chambers 33, stick feed chambers 45, and bins 47 are identified by corresponding segmented letter subscripts for the successive elements as viewed from the front of the apparatus, starting with the left most element. Similarly, the individual dividers 46 are identified by different letter subscripts.

Each of the bins 47 includes a lower vertical slot or feed portion which directly overlies the respective feed chambers 45, these slot portions being defined by adjacent vertical walls of the respective dividers 46, or hopper end walls 39 and 40, which are spaced apart to accommodate one vertical row of sticks 19. Upper supply portions of the bins are formed by inclined wall portions of the respective dividers and hopper end walls which diverge upwardly and outwardly from the lower slot portions, and by divider walls 48 extending upward from the apexes of the dividers. The several bins 47 as above defined open to a common upper chamber of the hopper l2; and a horizontal plate 49, dimensioned to fit loosely with the hopper walls, is carried on top of the sticks 19 contained within the hopper defining a weight to urge the sticks into the several bins.

An agitator assembly for assuring feed of the sticks 19 from the supply portions of the bin into the slot portions includes a plurality of agitator elements 51 through 55 which are confined for vertical reciprocating movement transverse slots provided in certain of the dividers 46. As best seen in FIG. 5, each of the dividers 46n, 460, 46q, 46s and 4614 are provided with front and rear vertical slots opening from the top and extending downwardly to a depth below the intersection of the inclined wall and vertical wall portions. The agitator elements 51 through 55 are platelike elements which are dimensioned to seat within these slots, and to define vertical end walls coinciding with the vertical walls of the dividers and inclined walls which coincide with the inclined walls of the dividers when the elements are seated in the lower most position. In other words, in a lower most position, these agitator elements define continuations of the vertical and inclined walls of the dividers. Front and rear agitator elements 51a and 51b, for example, are disposed in the slots of the divider 46n. Similarly the agitator elements 53a and 53b are disposed in respective slots of the divider 46q.

As best seen in FIGS. 7 and 8, each agitator element is supported on a respective post 656 which extends downwardly from the element through the respective divider and through the hopper baseplate 38. These posts 656 are secured at their lower ends to a transverse agitator bar 57 which is coupled to the extending stem 58 of the piston element of the agitator power cylinder 15; this power cylinder being secured to the frame 10 by'means of suitable brackets and support plates. It is seen then that the agitator elements are rigidly coupled to the agitator bar for reciprocating as a unitary agitator assembly. This assembly is shown in the lower most position in FIG. 7, with its limiting position being defined by the agitator elements which seat at the bases of the respective retaining slots. The assembly is urged to this position by plurality of compression springs 60, confined on pins 61 secured to the agitator bar, and compressed between the agitator bar and the undersurface of the hopper base plate 38. FIG. 9 is an isolated view of the divider 46 n with agitator elements 53a and 53b in the lowermost position.

FIG. 8 illustrates the agitator assembly in an upper limiting position which is defined by engagement of the pins 61 with the hopper baseplate 38. In this position, the inclined walls of the agitator elements 51 through 55 move upwardly relatively to the inclined walls of the dividers 46 to effect a rolling action of the adjacent sticks 19, and assist in feeding these sticks into the respective bin slot portions. The power cylinder is a single acting cylinder which acts to lift the agitator assembly to the upper limiting position asdescribed, with the assembly being returned by the springs 60.

It will be noted that the agitator elements are placed so that one wall of each bin 47 includes a slot having a pair of agitator elements mounted therein. In the cases of the dividers 46n, 46q, 46s and 4614, the agitator elements span the width of the dividers and function for two adjacent bins. In the case of the divider 460, the agitator elements provided in the divider 46n serve the bin 47b; and accordingly the agitator elements provided in the divider 46 occupy only one-half of the divider slots adjacent to the bin 47c. The remaining slot halves are filled with tiller elements 62. It will be seen then that one wall of each bin 47 includes a pair of agitator elements which define a portion of the vertical wall and a portion of the inclined wall. Since the sticks feeding from the supply portions into the slot portions will tend to jam at the area of intersection, the agitator elements serve the function of lifting the sticks at one side of the intersection allowing the sticks at the other side of the intersection to roll into the slot portion.

Referring particularly to FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, the carriage 13 includes an elongated plunger bar 65, which extends transversely across the frame 10, being supported for longitudinal sliding movement on the slide plates 26 and 27. The plunger bar 65 is secured to the forward end of the extensible stem 66 associated with the piston element of the power cylinder 14, the bar being coupled to the stem through a suitable pivot assembly 67. The power cylinder 14 is rigidly attached to the rear frame rail by means of suitable brackets, so that the power cylinder is rigidly anchored to the frame for reciprocating the plunger bar longitudinally relative to the frame. A plurality of elongated plungers 68a through 681' are rigidly attached to the plunger bar 65 extending forwardly therefrom and being disposed in side-by-siderelation in a common plane. As seen in the drawings, these plungers 68 are longitudinally aligned with respective stick dispenser chambers 45 a through 45i.

The carriage power cylinder 14 is a double acting cylinder which is shown in the retract position in the drawings, wherein the forward ends of the plungers 68 are supported in the guideholes in the rear hopper guideplate 43, but do not extend into the feed chambers 45. In this position of the plungers, then, a stick 19 from each of the bins 47, will drop by gravity into a respective stick feed chamber.

For the stick feed operation, the piston stem 66 of the power cylinder is urged forward, moving the plunger bar and plungers 68 to a forward limiting position. At the end of this movement, the plunger forward ends have passed through the feed chambers 45 and through the holes in the front guideplate 41, where the ends of the plungers lie in the forward plane of the front guideplate or extend slightly beyond the front guideplate to assure that the sticks 19 are disengaged from the hopper. When the plunger bar and the plungers are retracted by the power cylinder, the plungers are returned to the rearward position wherein the forward ends of the plungers are supported in the rear guideplate 43.

The above described carriage power cylinder 14 and agitator power cylinder 15 are operated by compressed air through the control valve assembly 16. The control valve assembly, in a preferred form, includes a fourway valve contained in a suitable housing 70, supported on a bracket 71, mounted on the frame 10. A foot pedal 72, to be actuated by the operator of the apparatus, actuates the valve as will be described.

The apparatus includes a conventional air inlet assembly which includes an air filter 75, air pressure regulator 76 and air line oiler 77 mounted as an assembly on a suitable mounting plate 78, attached to the frame 10 as best seen in FIG. 3. A supply hose 79 is connected to this assembly, through a suitable fitting, for supplying compressed air from a suitable source. A connecting supply hose 80 connects the inlet assembly with the inlet to the four-way valve of the valve assembly 16. A feed conduit 81 connects one outlet of the four-way valve to the feed end of the carriage power cylinder 14 which is the rearward end of the power cylinder. An agitator conduit 82 connects the other outlet of the four-way valve to a T-fitting 83 mounted at the lower end of the agitator power cylinder 15 and connected to the cylinder chamber of this power cylinder. A retract conduit 84 is connected between the T-fitting 83 and the retract end of the carriage power carriage power cylinder 14.

When the foot pedal 72 is depressed by the operator, compressed air is directed through the control valve through the feed conduit 81 to urge the plunger carriage 13 to the forward position. Simultaneously, the agitator conduit 82 is vented through the control valve to permit the feed of the plunger carriage and to effect downward movement of the agitator by the springs 60.

In the normal or release position of the pedal, the feed conduit 81 is vented through; the control valve to vent the feed end of the carriage power cylinder; and simultaneously compressed air is supplied through the agitator conduit 82 and retract conduit 84 to lift the agitator assembly and to effect retraction of the plunger carriage 13. With the retraction of the plungers 68 from the feed chambers 45, sticks 19 will drop into the feed chambers and simultaneously the sticks at the top of the bin slot are displaced by the agitator ele ments to permit the feed of the sticks into the tops of the bin slots.

The transport holder 17 is an accessory to the above described apparatus and includes an elongated assembly of inner and outer telescoping tubular members of rectangular cross section. The outer tube has a length generally corresponding to the length of the food holder 11; and the inner tube 91 is contained entirely within the outer tube 90. Elongated arms 92 are welded to one face of the outer tube 90, which is at the rearward face of the transport holder in assembly with the apparatus, the arms 90 sewing as longitudinal extensions of the outer tube for manual handling of the transport holder and for supporting the holder on a suitable rack as will be described. Transverse anns 93 are secured as by welding to each of the arms 92, the

transverse arms 93 extending rearwardly in the as sembly to engage the end walls of the hopper for locating the transport holder relative to the hopper. In this assembled relation, as best seen in FIGS. 2 and 4, the outer tube 90 is held in a spaced relation from the forward face of the front guideplate 41 by the intervening thickness of the arms 92. The transverse arms 93 may also serve as handles for the manual handling of the transport holder.

As best seen in FIGS. 10 and 11, the inner tube 91 is confined within the outer tube at one end by a retaining pin 95 and intervening compression spring 96. The inner tube is retained at the opposite end by an actuator lever 97, which is an L shaped lever having a cam portion 97a, extending thorough the outer tube 90 and being rotatively supported and confined in the suitable bushings 98 provided in the upper and lower walls of the outer tube.

A wear assembly for the end of the inner tube 91 opposite from the compression spring, includes a flanged cylindrical bushing 100 which seats within the inner tube, bearing on the end thereof. The bushing 100 has a central bore, and a wear disk 101 has a transverse pin affixed thereto to be received within the bushing bore and retain the wear disk in assembled relation with the bushing 100.

The cam portion of the actuator arm 97 includes a flatted surface which, in the release position illustrated in FIG. 10, coacts with the inner sleeve to a limiting position as urged by the compression spring 96.

The side walls of the inner and outer tubes 90 and 91 are provided with a plurality of longitudinally spaced holes 102 and 103 respectively; these holes being arranged in sets spaced which are spaced such that they are in alignment with respective feed chambers 45 when the transport holder is appropriately positioned and located relative to the hopper as above described.

- The holes 90 and 91 are dimensioned relative to the sticks 19 to permit free passage of the sticks through the transport holder, yet to permit clamping of the sticks by movement of the inner tube 91 relative to the outer tube 90. This clamping of the sticks is effected by the rotation of the actuator arm 97 from the position shown in FIG. 10 to the position shown in FIG. 10 to the position shown in FIG. 12 wherein the cylindrical portion of the actuator cam portion 97 a moves into engagement with the wear disk 101. This moves the entire assembly of inner tube and wear bushing to the left against the force of the compression spring 96. In this position, as best seen in FIG. 12, the holes 103 of the inner tube are displaced relative to the holes 102 of the outer tube to affect clamping of the sticks 19 at both the front and rear walls of the transport holder. In this clamped position, the assembly of the transport holder, the clamped sticks, and assembled wieners may be removed as a unit from the food holder for further processing of the food articles.

The spacing between the hopper l2 and the transport holder 17, which is provided as above described by the arms 92, is essential so that when the sticks are feed from the hopper, the rearward ends of the sticks will clear the dispenser front guideplate 41, and yet will not be fed too far forward relative to the transport holder to prevent the clamping of the rearward ends of the sticks as above described.

Another accessory to the above described apparatus is a rack assembly mounted on the frame 10 for supporting a plurality of transport holders 17, either with or without the assembled sticks and wieners. This rack assembly includes parallel longitudinally extending rack bars 105, supported above the frame 10 by a suitable upright support legs 106 which are attached to the side rails 21 and 23 of the frame. As best seen in FIG. 3, the rack bars 105 are spaced apart on appropriate distance to support the transport holders by means of the arms 92.

The operation of the above described apparatus with the accessories will now be briefly summarized. A transport holder 17 is first positioned on the frame and located relative to the hopper 12. The food holder 11 is loaded with the desired number of wieners 18 which are placed in the food chambers 33, and the cover 31 of the food holder is closed to confine the wieners within the chambers. It is assumed that the hopper 12 has been loaded with an appropriate quantity of sticks 19.

The control valve is then actuated by the operator by depressing the foot pedal 72; and this directs compressed air to the feed end of the carriage power cylinder 14 to advance the carriage 13 and the associated plungers forward. Simultaneously the retract end of the carriage power cylinder is vented to permit this movement, and the agitator power cylinder is also vented permitting the agitator assembly to move to its lower most position under the urging of the compression springs 60. The agitator elements 51 through 55 ten move into an alignment with the respective divider walls.

The forward movement of the plungers 68 pushes the sticks forward through the holes of the front guideplate 41, into the food holder chamber 33 to be inserted into and retained by the wieners 18. At the end of this forward carriage stroke, the rearward ends of the sticks 19 lie within the gap between the hopper front guideplate 41 and the rearward wall of the transport holder 17, to assure the clamping of the sticks within the transport holder and to permit removal of the assembly of the transport holder, sticks, and attached wieners from the apparatus.

The operator then releases the foot pedal 72 to vent the feed end of the carriage power cylinder and to direct compressed air to the retract end of the carriage power cylinder and to the agitator power cylinder. The carriage is then retracted to withdraw the plunger to the positioned illustrated in the drawings, the plungers moving out of the stick dispenser feed chambers 45 to permit sticks 19 to drop into these chambers. Simultaneously the agitator elements 51 through 55 are lifted relative to the dividers 46, to roll or lift the sticks adjacent to one side of the bin slots, and to permit sticks adjacent to the other side to roll freely into the bin slots. This assures the continuous feed of sticks 19 from the bin supply portions into the bin slots during the several cycles of the apparatus.

The actuator lever 97 of the transport holder 17 is then rotated from the position shown in FIG. 10 to the position shown in FIG. 11 to shift the inner tube 91 relative to the outer tube and to clamp the sticks rigidly within the holder. The food holder 1 l is then opened by swinging the cover plate 31 to the rest position, shown in broken lines in FIGS. 1 and 2; and the assembly of the transport holder 17 sticks 19, and wieners 18 may then be readily removed from the apparatus by grasping the arm extensions 92. This assembly is adapted for the handling of the corny dogs for subsequent processing operations such as packaging or cooking.

For temporary storage prior to subsequent processing, the transport holders may be suspended on the rack bars 105 as seen in FIG. 3.

What has been described is an improved, semi-automatic apparatus for inserting round holding sticks into a batch of food articles such as wieners, and for providing means for handling the batch of assembled sticks and wieners for subsequent processing operations. While particular reference is made in the foregoing description to food items such as wieners and to wooden sticks serving as holders to support the wieners by the consumer, it will be apparent that the above described apparatus may be employed for inserting other forms of elongated articles into other types of food articles or into non-food articles.

Advantages of the apparatus are that it is simple, rugged, and semi-automatic; and that after the loading of the wieners into the food holder 11, no further manual handling of the food products is required.

A particular feature of the apparatus is the agitator assembly which is most effective in assuring the feed of the sticks within the hopper into the several stick feed chambers to assure continuous operation and to minimize down time of the apparatus during production runs.

While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it willbe understood by those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention.

Whatis claimed is:

1. Apparatus for inserting sticks in articles comprismg:

a frame defining a support table;

an article holder mounted on said table defining an array of side-by-side chambers for supporting and confining a plurality of articles; said article holder being openable to expose said article chambers for inserting and removing the articles;

a hopper supported on said table defining a plurality of side-by-side stick feed chambers aligned longitudinally with respective article chambers in said article holder; said hopper defining a plurality of side-by-side bins, each associated with a respective stick feed chamber; each of said bins-including a vertical slot portion disposed above and communicating with a respective stick feed chamber, for accommodating a single vertical row of sticks, and a upper divergent portion communicating with a slot portion;

said hopper including side-by-side dividers, each divider defining the adjacent walls of two adjacent bins; vertically reciprocating agitator elements mounted in certain of said dividers to coact with one side wall of each hopper bin; each agitator element defining a portion of a bin side wall including a divergent portion thereof;

power means for reciprocating said agitator elements;

a plunger carriage slidably supported on said table having spaced side-by-side plungers longitudinally aligned with respective stick feed chambers; and power means for reciprocating said plunger carriage to displace sticks longitudinally from said stick feed chambers into said article chambers.

2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1:

including an elongated stick holder assembly supported on said table between said article holder and said hopper; said stick holder including telescoping tubular members having longitudinally spaced sets of aligned holes, dimensioned to receive and pass the sticks fed from said hopper feed chambers into said article chambers; and means for longitudinally shifting one of said tubular members relative to the other tomisalign the hole sets for clamping the sticks in said stick holder; said stick holder defining a removable carrier for transporting a plurality of assembled sticks and articles.

3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1.

wherein said carriage power means and said agitator power means each comprise a pneumatic power cylinder;

control valve means being operable to one position to actuate said carriage cylinder to extend said plungers into said feed chambers, and being operable to a second normal position to actuate said carriage cylinder to retract said plungers and simultaneously actuate said agitator cylinder to displace the agitator elements from respective bin side walls.

4. For use in apparatus for inserting sticks in articles including an article holder having an array of article chambers for confining and supporting a plurality of articles;

A hopper adapted to be mounted in spaced relation to an article holder, comprising an array of bins for containing a supply of sticks, and an array of feed chambers each communicating with one of said bins; each of said feed chambers adapted to be longitudinally aligned with a respective article chamber; I

and said hopper including agitator means for acting on the sticks contained in each of said hopper bins to assist in the feeding of sticks to the respective feed chambers.

5. Apparatus as set forth in claim 4;

including a carriage mounted for longitudinal reciprocating movement relative to said hopper; said carriage including a plurality of plungers longitudinally aligned with respective hopper feed chambers; and power means for actuating said carriage and plungers to feed the sticks longitudinally from said feed chambers into the article chambers.

6. Apparatus as set forth in claim 4;

wherein said hopper includes an array of side-by-side bins, each including a lower feed portion having verticle walls for accommodating a single verticle row of sticks and an upper supply portion having inclined walls converging toward the feed portion for containing a supply of sticks; each of said bin feed portions communicating with a respective feed chamber;

and wherein said agitator means includes members forming parts of at least one inclined wall of each bin and acting on the sticks moving from the supply portion to the feed portion.

7. Apparatus as set forth in claim 6:

wherein each of said feed chambers comprises a semi-cylindrical groove defining the base of a respective bin feed portion; the walls of said hopper defining openings aligned with said feed chambers permitting ingress of said carriage plungers and egress of sticks disposed in said feed chambers.

8. Apparatus as set forth in claim 6:

wherein said hopper includes a plurality of dividers defining the adjacent side walls of adjacent bins; the side walls so defined including a vertical wall of a feed portion and an inclined wall of the supply portion; certain of said divider walls including at least two longitudinally spaced vertical slots;

vertically reciprocating agitator elements disposed in said slots; said elements being shaped to define, in a lower position thereof, a continuation of the vertical and inclined walls of the divider elements; and said agitator elements being movable upward to define a raised portion of the inclined walls of the respective divider elements. 9. Apparatus as set forth in claim 8: support means for said agitator elements including a transversely extending baseplate and the plurality of posts extending upwardly from said plate for coupling said agitator elements to said plate; and power means for reciprocating said plate and agitator elements relative to said hopper dividers. 

1. Apparatus for inserting sticks in articles comprising: a frame defining a support table; an article holder mounted on said table defining an array of side-by-side chambers for supporting and confining a plurality of articles; said article holder being openable to expose said article chambers for inserting and removing the articles; a hopper supported on said table defining a plurality of sideby-side stick feed chambers aligned longitudinally with respective article chambers in said article holder; said hopper defining a plurality of side-by-side bins, each associated with a respective stick feed chamber; each of said bins including a vertical slot portion disposed above and communicating with a respective stick feed chamber, for accommodating a single vertical row of sticks, and a upper divergent portion communicating with a slot portion; said hopper including side-by-side dividers, each divider defining the adjacent walls of two adjacent bins; vertically reciprocating agitator elements mounted in certain of said dividers to coact with one side wall of each hopper bin; each agitator element defining a portion of a bin side wall including a divergent portion thereof; power means for reciprocating said agitator elements; a plunger carriage slidably supported on said table having spaced side-by-side plungers longitudinally aligned with respective stick feed chambers; and power means for reciprocating said plunger carriage to displace sticks longitudinally from said stick feed chambers into said article chambers.
 2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1: including an elongated stick holder assembly supported on said table between said article holder and said hopper; said stick holder including telescoping tubular members having longitudinally spaced sets of aligned holes, dimensioned to receive and pass the sticks fed from said hopper feed chambers into said article chambers; and means for longitudinally shifting one of said tubular members relative to the other to misalign the hole sets for clamping the sticks in said stick holder; said stick holder defining a removable carrier for transporting a plurality of assembled sticks and articles.
 3. Apparatus as set forth in claim
 1. wherein said carriage power means and said agitator power means each comprise a pneumatic power cylinder; control valve means being operable to one position to actuate said carriage cylinder to extend said plungers into said feed chambers, and being operable to a second normal position to actuate said carriage cylinder to retract said plungers and simultaneouSly actuate said agitator cylinder to displace the agitator elements from respective bin side walls.
 4. For use in apparatus for inserting sticks in articles including an article holder having an array of article chambers for confining and supporting a plurality of articles; A hopper adapted to be mounted in spaced relation to an article holder, comprising an array of bins for containing a supply of sticks, and an array of feed chambers each communicating with one of said bins; each of said feed chambers adapted to be longitudinally aligned with a respective article chamber; and said hopper including agitator means for acting on the sticks contained in each of said hopper bins to assist in the feeding of sticks to the respective feed chambers.
 5. Apparatus as set forth in claim 4; including a carriage mounted for longitudinal reciprocating movement relative to said hopper; said carriage including a plurality of plungers longitudinally aligned with respective hopper feed chambers; and power means for actuating said carriage and plungers to feed the sticks longitudinally from said feed chambers into the article chambers.
 6. Apparatus as set forth in claim 4; wherein said hopper includes an array of side-by-side bins, each including a lower feed portion having verticle walls for accommodating a single verticle row of sticks and an upper supply portion having inclined walls converging toward the feed portion for containing a supply of sticks; each of said bin feed portions communicating with a respective feed chamber; and wherein said agitator means includes members forming parts of at least one inclined wall of each bin and acting on the sticks moving from the supply portion to the feed portion.
 7. Apparatus as set forth in claim 6: wherein each of said feed chambers comprises a semi-cylindrical groove defining the base of a respective bin feed portion; the walls of said hopper defining openings aligned with said feed chambers permitting ingress of said carriage plungers and egress of sticks disposed in said feed chambers.
 8. Apparatus as set forth in claim 6: wherein said hopper includes a plurality of dividers defining the adjacent side walls of adjacent bins; the side walls so defined including a vertical wall of a feed portion and an inclined wall of the supply portion; certain of said divider walls including at least two longitudinally spaced vertical slots; vertically reciprocating agitator elements disposed in said slots; said elements being shaped to define, in a lower position thereof, a continuation of the vertical and inclined walls of the divider elements; and said agitator elements being movable upward to define a raised portion of the inclined walls of the respective divider elements.
 9. Apparatus as set forth in claim 8: support means for said agitator elements including a transversely extending baseplate and the plurality of posts extending upwardly from said plate for coupling said agitator elements to said plate; and power means for reciprocating said plate and agitator elements relative to said hopper dividers. 